Tuesday, May 13, 2008

I'm a real sucker for Southern comfort food. Call it my roots living in Tennessee, Virginia, and South Carolina for most of my life, but I love delicious foods made in the South. Unfortunately, most of these foods are decidedly high in carbohydrates.

That's why I have been looking for and working on coming up with low-carb versions of fried chicken, lemon icebox pie, and so many more. Lately I've been experimenting with my own version of mashed cauliflower and putting a Southern spin on it by frying it up in a pan like you would potato pancakes.

I've had some minor issues with getting the mashed cauliflower to brown like the potato version, but this recipe tastes as good as it looks! ENJOY!

Break up the cauliflower and place in a large pot of water. Cook on high heat to a boil for 20-30 minutes until very soft. When it reaches this consistency, put out paper towels across the counter and carefully pull the cauliflower out individually on the paper towels. Take more paper towels and place on top of the cauliflower. Gently press down to soak up the excess water in the cauliflower.

Grab a big bowl and place the cauliflower you just dabbed with the paper towels in it. Using a potato masher, thoroughly mash up the cauliflower until it is smooth. Add butter, bacon, sour cream, whipping cream, salt and pepper, and egg. Whip until well-blended.

Heat up a non-stick skillet to medium high, spray cooking spray or use butter to grease the bottom of the pan, and scoop the cauliflower mixture into the skillet. Cook the cauliflower patties for couple of minutes constantly scraping the sides. Gently flip and place cheese on top cooking for two more minutes.

Plate the cauliflower cake and put a dollop of sour cream on top.

ALTERNATIVE RECIPE OPTION: My wife Christine loves garlic and onions, so I added these to the cauliflower mix before the skillet step. It's not too bad, so you might try it!